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Your question is well founded. Some type of visas to some countries allow you to enter and exit via specific entry points only. For example, ENTRI visa of Malaysia limits to persons who are appearing from direct flights and go out of country on direct flights (or transit to specific countries). And the Airports of arrival is also limited.
For USA, there is ...
71
Google was wrong. There are two airports "in" Reykjavík: Reykjavík Airport, which is close to town and serves only domestic destinations and Greenland, and Keflavík International Airport, a.k.a. Reykjavík–Keflavík, which is 50km to the west and which has all the international flights.
At the time when the question was posted, if you searched Google ...
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You will be arriving at Keflavik (KEF), which is a 40-ish minute drive outside Reykjavik. Keflavik is now the main airport for Reykjavik, and all the car hire agencies have a presence there.
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No, 4 days is (way) too short for tourists and especially in the winter.
Yes, you can probably drive around the ring road (Route 1) in Iceland; it's 1,332 km and the Golden Circle is only 300 km. The roads are paved, in good condition, and the maximum speed is 90 km/h (with a few exceptions in villages). That means that with ~5 hours driving per day, you ...
46
You could change without the rental firm knowing, but it's very risky. Suppose there is an accident while the other driver is driving. If there are any witnesses to the accident (drivers of other vehicles, for example), the company will find out. When considering this possibility, remember that endeavoring to drive very carefully doesn't help very much, ...
29
I found the definitive answer when I was typing this question; while inserting the ⌘ in the question's title and hovering over it, the dialog showed me it's a Place of Interest Sign:
According to Wikipedia, it's called a Looped Square and it's mainly used for this specific purpose in the Scandinavian countries:
It is also known as the place of interest ...
26
There are obviously a lot of gas stations along this road too, some of which have restrooms you can pay a little to use. See hours on the linked page as well. These are frequently treated as public facilities, rather than for paying customers only.
You can also pay a little at hostels / guesthouses along the way to use their facilities.
25
Contact your credit card issuer, and ask for a second card on your account with your wife's name printed on it. Most credit card companies will happily do this.
25
I would suggest to invest in a good phobia therapy; it will help in the long run.
Either with a private generalist therapist or with a specialist that , erm, specialized in air travel/flight phobia.
I know that some major airlines offer courses/therapy to help passengers get over their fears (or at least minimize them)
For example :
https://www....
24
I don't know if boarding a freighter by asking around in the port or approaching the ship's captain is still possible nowadays, many things I read suggest it is not. In a large port like Rotterdam, there is also no way to get anywhere near most ships without a car and some credentials.
On the other hand, there are many opportunities to travel on a freighter ...
23
From the way you described it, it looks like you agreed to a contract with specific terms, which include cancellation penalty. Unless the contract stated the penalty would only apply once you made your first payment, then you owe the cancellation fees, and thus yes, you are responsible to pay it. Paying them would of course be your first option.
Your ...
19
If flight time is truly of the highest consideration, then this blog details one person's travel around the world desiring the least possible flight time in doing so.
Three options are proposed, but I can't confirm whether they are still current:
Fly from Vladivostok (or Khabarovsk) to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, then get a flight from Petropavlovsk-...
18
My girlfriend and I did this drive about 3 years ago, and we went all the way through Vik and up to Egilsstaðir. We never struggled to find petrol stations, small coffee shops and guesthouses where we could stop on the drive. The longest distance we had to go was a couple of hours (say 3-4 at worst). From our experience, you should really not worry about ...
18
Reykjavik to Halifax (Nova Scotia) is showing as 18:05 to 19:40 according to Icelandair's summer timetable, page 23.
That isn't really 1h35 minutes of course, thanks to time zones. The timetable shows Reykjavik on GMT while Halifax is on GMT-3 thanks to Daylight Savings.
So, 4 hours 35 minutes from Reykjavik to Halifax.
Edit : when I'm calling the ...
17
UPDATE: TomTom now have maps for Iceland. As of their latest update, this has been added to the 'Western Europe' collection for many devices.
TomTom use "TeleAtlas" maps, and in fact they actually bought TeleAtlas several years ago.
As with most mapping companies, TeleAtlas has varying levels of coverage for different countries. For countries like the US,...
17
Wikimedia Commons has a picture where the contents of the plate can be discerned. They are there to help you identify landmarks in the vicinity. These sorts of things are called “orientation tables” in several European languages (French, Dutch…). I have also come across the phrase “viewpoint indicator”.
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Yes. You can leave the airport. Iceland is part of the Schengen Area. Thus, as a British citizen you do not need a visa to visit Iceland. Just be back in time to get through security and border control (if flying outside Schengen) before your flight leaves. You'll need to be back at the airport at least one hour before departure.
Update: When I originally ...
16
@phoog's answer is very good, but I'm posting this answer to place more emphasis. Do not even consider doing this. Only the people who are named drivers of the vehicle are insured to driving it. This isn't just a matter of you being liable to pay damages if you're in an accident (which could be a huge amount of money depending on what/who you damage/injure/...
16
There is no requirement to leave and enter through the same port of entry. Note that this applies to everybody: US citizens, permanent residents, visitors, and anybody else entering or leaving the US.
If you are planning flights, you are certainly free to choose flight routing that comes back via a different route if that ends up being more economical for ...
15
This depends heavily on the weather and where in Iceland you are. If you are staying in Reykjavík, you'll need to drive some distance out of town to truly get a good view of the northern lights. In more remote destinations it may simply be a matter of stepping outside. Of course, it could be cloudy the entire week. There are no guarantees.
Indeed, even ...
15
There is nothing in the regulations that prevents an applicant from using a hospitality exchange or social networking for accommodation.
They would treat these arrangements in the same way as if friends were offering you a place, but since they are not real friends, you will need to be a bit careful with how you present your evidence. It means you can't ...
15
If you rent a car in March, the car will be fine for driving on the ring road in March. The question is, will you be?
I used to live in northern Scandinavia, and have driven rental cars in winter in both Sweden and Norway. With good tyres and wide roads, driving is not really a problem, but you will have to be careful. Expect longer braking distances, ...
15
Restrooms appear with adequate frequency along the way. A few years ago, I drove around the whole island. While I was told the ring road was around 1400km, my car clocked in 3400km when I returned to to the rental place, since I kept taking detours and looping around to see the sights. Sometimes the sights were so beatuful that I decided not to stop the ...
15
St. John's seems like the best jumping-off point, as the easternmost major airport in North America. If having the shortest flight possible is really the goal, Air Canada has a flight from St. John's to London Heathrow, 5:05 eastbound, 5:50 westbound. In summer only, WestJet does St. John's to Dublin, 4:30 eastbound, 4:55 westbound. Here's information ...
13
No.
The most recent theme park to have to closed down in Iceland (back in 1994) was in Hveragerði but nothing remains of it today. It wasn't even much of a theme park, the rides were mostly of the mobile variety. No roller coasters or such.
There was an older one that operated in 1946 and shut down in 1965. Nothing remains of that either.
If you want to ...
13
'Expensive' is relative. That said, a quick search on https://book.cartrawler.com saw me get prices for under 500 euros for ten days. Still not very pleasant, but better than 1100 euros.
Your question is really asking why Iceland is so expensive, as the relatively high cost of things in Iceland is not limited to just car rentals.
Numbeo shows that the cost ...
13
It looks like all your devices can be charged via USB. In this case you should already have voltage switching chargers for all of them. In fact, these chargers are interchangeable, except for the cable part to connect the iPhone.
Should this be the case all you need is a plug adapter such as this one. You buy several and they are sold in packs sometimes. To ...
13
The only company I know of that runs regular ferries to Iceland from either Denmark or the Faroe Islands is Smyril Line. Also, I'm Portuguese and have already been to Iceland and I can tell you I've never heard of a commercial ferry company doing that route.
I also found a website with all the ferries within Iceland, not sure if it is of any value to you: ...
12
In August most roads should be open. The condition of any given road can never be guaranteed though. You should consult the website of the Icelandic Road Administration for up to date information about what roads are closed. If you click on the Condition of Mountain tracks you'll see the current state. Most roads are open by now, but its been a cold summer ...
12
There are numerous hiking trails in Iceland, ranging from easy half-days to strenuous multi-day affairs.
The website of the Icelandic Touring Association lists several options, but the list is nowhere near exhaustive. The most notable route is Laugarvegurinn.
I'd certainly recommend a proper nature hike over walking the ring road. It can't be much fun to ...
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